1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to cracking and shelling nuts and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for shelling nuts such as pecans, without damaging the nut meat.
2. Description of Related Art
Nut shelling apparatuses that crack and shell various types and sizes of nuts are well known in the art. These nut shelling apparatus range from simple table models, which can be operated manually or by an electrical or battery power driven motor, to sophisticated commercial models used in high volume production. In each instance, the problem arises as to the amount of pressure necessary to crack the shell, while leaving the meat of the nut undamaged or in whole pieces.
The problem is further complicated by the fact that nuts come in varying sizes. The cracking chamber that cracks the nut must accommodate a variety of shapes and sizes of nuts. The accommodation to the adjustment must be able to avoid over cracking or under cracking the nut. Most nut shelling apparatuses use a cracking device, such as a lever, ratchet teeth, or some type of striking device to crack the nut. The use of sharp impacts such as these can result in pieces or fragments of the shell remaining in the cracking chamber, thereby producing a potential reliability problem of the nut cracker, or broken nut meat as a result of uneven cracking pressure.
From the foregoing, it can be seen that there is a need for a nut shelling apparatus that is easy to use, provides reliability in cracking nuts of various sizes and provides minimal damage to the nut meat.
To overcome the limitations of the prior art described above, and to overcome other limitations that will become apparent upon reading and understanding the present specification, the present invention discloses a simple, safe, and efficient nut shelling apparatus that is especially adapted to cracking the shells of nuts such as pecans without damaging the nut meat.
The nut shelling apparatus disclosed herein introduces the nut between opposed grooved rollers, which, when operated in a counter-rotating fashion, will grip the nut and apply increasing force to crack the shell. The grooves in the rollers direct the cracking forces diagonally across the nut, thereby providing multiple fractures and a more complete breakage of the shell. The clearance between the rollers is adjustable by the user to obtain an optimal result. Adjustment is not critical and nuts of similar size will be cracked with minimal damage to the nut meat inside.
The device is contemplated as having manual and/or motor-driven means of operations, with the motor drive components being considered a value-added option for higher volume use. The manual crank is further contemplated as being removable for storage and for safety during motorized operation.
A supply hopper is specially-configured to guide and direct the nuts to the opening between the grooved rollers. A gauging plate coupled to an adjustment mechanism varies the clearance in the throat of the hopper to inhibit oversize nuts from entering the cracking rollers. A projecting portion of the gauging plate extends through a slot in the enclosure to provide a visual indication of the position of the gauge. A graduated scale is provided beside the slot to indicate the relative spacing between the rollers.
In operation, the user places a plurality of nuts into the supply hopper, the nuts are directed to the grooved cracking rollers, the operator turns a crank or engages a motor drive to turn the counter-rotating rollers, the nuts are guided between the opposed rollers, increasing force is applied to crack the shells, the cracked nuts are carried through the rollers and discharged onto an inclined chute, and the nut meats and shell fragments are collected in a dish, pan, or other container supplied by the user.
An object of this invention is to provide a simple, reliable means of cracking and shelling nuts of varying sizexe2x80x94avoiding the drawbacks of conventional nut shelling apparatuses. This invention is particularly well-suited to table nuts and can be operated in the home when a large quantity of nuts must be cracked with minimal damage to the nut meat.
These and various other objects, features, and advantages of novelty that characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed hereto and forming a part hereof. However, for a better understanding of the invention, its advantages, and the objects obtained by its use, reference should be made to the drawings which form a further part hereof, and to the accompanying descriptive matter, in which there is illustrated and described a specific example of an apparatus and method for shelling nuts in accordance with the principles of the present invention.